


Prologue: Blank Minds and Blinking Lights

by b074



Series: More To Us [1]
Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: Baeman, Carmilla - Freeform, Carmilla Movie, Carmilla series, F/F, F/M, LGBTQ Themes, Multi, Natlise, Natvanlis, Negovanman - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-04
Updated: 2017-11-21
Packaged: 2019-01-29 07:10:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 4,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12625827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/b074/pseuds/b074
Summary: Background: 27 year old Natasha is divorced and has a 4 year old son named Andrew. She's a full-time actor that flies out to California often for work. Her best friend Elise 26 that she met on a set of a feature film is now living with them helping Natasha around the house. She works part-time as an actor and at home journalist.Summary: Natasha flies out to LA to work on a project and Elise stays behind to watch Andrew. Elise and Andrew are meant to visit Natasha when things go downhill.





	1. Intro

AN: Hi everyone! I'm quite new to this whole writing fanfiction thing and this is my first official story. If you see any grammatical errors please comment and I'll go back to edit them!

This is a Negovanman short story that I wrote for school that I wanted to take a bit further so honestly, for the most part, there won't be a romantic character development here however if this gets good reviews I would love to take into that direction.

Thank you!

-B

*disclaimer* - I tried to base the characters off of the actors the best that I could but there's a hint of their characters and definitely some small changes to them.


	2. Flash Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AN: Just the to set the story

_"Natasha you have to come back home now!" I was starting to panic._

_There were blinking lights and sirens blaring all around me. Everything seemed to be happening all too fast around me and I didn't know what to do. There was nothing I could do. I felt helpless and lost._


	3. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> N/A

**Natasha's POV**

"Andrew! You have to come down for breakfast my man!"

Once again we were running 20 minutes late. I had to catch a flight to Los Angeles in 2 hours to start prepping for my new feature film and I also had to drop off Andrew to his morning preschool class. Elise was just getting out of bed as her schedule usually doesn't start until 10am.

"I'm coming, mommy!"

I hear the fast but light footsteps of my 4 year old followed by the slow heavier footsteps of my best friend. Elise and I had met 2 years ago on a feature film we did together in New York. We played best friends on screen and eventually became best friends off screen too. 2 years ago was also when Andrew's father and I got our divorce and I was on my own. I had met Andrew's dad in theatre school and as young and in love kids do we got married early. I had Andrew when I was 23 and got a divorce when at I was 25. Pretty much lived it all in a span of 5 years. Thankfully I met Elise then. After our film wrapped I headed back home to Toronto where she was also from but because she had temporarily moved to New York for this film she had no place to go. So now she's become Andrew's full-time nanny while I'm out of town and stays with us in our studio apartment.

"What's for breakfast?" Elise asks mid-yawn.

"Pancakes which have gone cold now and bacon which you might need to reheat. I also made green tea latte for you which is next to the sink."

"Thank you! You're amazing! Pancakes and bacon are definitely a way to start the morning."

"There's leftovers in the fridge for lunch. Also, don't forget to pick up Andrew at 2. He has a play date with Johnny after school so he should have eaten lunch by then too. There are clothes in the washing machine that needs to be moved. I'll land aro---"

"Natasha take a breath. You're in a hurry. If you want I'll drop off Andrew at school and you head out." Elise chuckles as I probably look exasperated in a hurry to get everything done.

"Are you sure?" I relax for a moment thankful for my friend.

"Yes, I'm sure. We got this right buddy?" Elise reaches out her fist to Andrew who responds with a fist bump.

A smile forms on my face as I watch my two favorite people interact.

"Well, then you behave for Auntie Elise then my man. Mommy loves you and I'll see you in a week." I give Andrew a tight hug and kiss on the head.

"And you, you behave yourself too and don't make my house a mess" Elise laughs as I lean in to hug her.

"Hahaha don't worry. Now shoo! You're going to miss your flight!"

"Bye Mommy!!"

"Bye my man!" I take one more glance at the two as I hurry out to catch my taxi to the airport.

Later that day

California is amazing. Every time I come back for work I'm always busy admiring something new. Hopefully, someday I can come back without business to attend, maybe a family vacation. I'm in my Airbnb place getting settled for work. It's a little before Andrew's bedtime so I decide to give Elise a call.

"Hello?"

"Hey Elise"

"Hey, Nat! How's LA so far?" There's an excitement in her voice with a slight tiredness.

I gotta give Elise some props for doing this for me. She used to be a single young adult out in the world pursuing her career but was kind enough to jump right into our family and take care of Andrew. It can't be easy picking up essentially motherhood just like that.

"LA is great! I swear it just gets better and better each time I come back. Is Andrew still up?" As much as it's nice talking to my best friend I'm eager to hear the voice of my son.

"Yeah, just a moment" I hear Elise calling Andrew's name across the room attempting to cover up the mic.

"Hi, mommy!!" The excited voice of my son brings a smile to my face.

"Hi, Andrew! How are you doing my man?"

"I'm doing great mommy. Today Johnny's mom took us to eat ice cream. I had vanilla with strawberries in it!" Sometimes the innocence in a child's voice is all it takes to make you crumble.

"That sounds yummy! Did you leave mommy some?"

"Oh, no I'm sorry." Hearing the genuine sorry in his voice makes me smile.

"Haha don't worry mommy actually got some ice cream here too."

"Oh really? What flavor?" Andrew perks up knowing he's no longer in fault.

"Mommy had chocolate like always"

"That sounds yummy. Mommy, I'm getting tired." I hear Andrew yawn through the phone.

"Alright, Andrew. Auntie Elise will tuck you into bed. Be a good boy for her."

"Okay, mommy! I love you"

"I love you too Andrew!" I hear Andrew pass the phone back to Elise and shuffle back to his room.

"Hey I'll call back after I put Andrew down"

"Sounds good. Kiss him goodnight for me."

"Always do" I can hear Elise smiling and she hangs up the phone.

Now I've got a few minutes to kill as I wait for Elise to call back.


	4. Bedtime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> N/A

**Elise's POV**

After getting off the phone with Natasha I make my way towards Andrew's room. I smile as I walk in to see small Andrew in his Paw Patrol onesie crouched down playing with his toys.

"Hey buddy" I knock on the doorframe to get his attention.

"Hi, Auntie Elise. I was just playing with Marshall. Are you going to read me a bedtime story?" Andrew looks up with a smile on his face.

"Of course buddy. How about you pick out a book while I go downstairs to get a cup of water."

"Okay!"

I walk downstairs to get a glass of water. When I walk back into Andrew's room I see that he's already tucked himself in with his stuffed dog by his side waiting for me.

"Ok, what are we reading tonight?"

"It's the Paw Patrol saving a kitty out of a tree!" Andrew's face lights up with excitement as he tells me about the book.

Soon enough Andrew is fast asleep and I quietly walk out. I check the time to make sure it's not too late and call Natasha.

"Hey" The phone rings twice and Natasha picks up.

"Hey. So how are things with the film?" I asked out of genuine curiosity.

Natasha is always so dedicated to her work and whenever she talks about what she's doing it sounds as though she's falling in love all over again.

"Things are going good so far! Today we just had a brief informational meeting and then had a cast and crew dinner afterward. How were things with Andrew?"

"That's great to hear!" Listening to Natasha talk about her day always makes mine "Andrew had a good day. Johnny's mom said she wanted to schedule another playdate sometime because the kids had a lot of fun."

"I'm glad Andrew's making friends. As much as I love you spending time with him for me he's been alone with you and different nanny's for so long I sometimes worry that he'll become detached from kids his age. I also wish that I could spend more time with him." I can hear the worry in Natasha's voice as she continues to ramble on.

"Hey hey hey stop. You are doing a great job raising your son. Just because Andrew doesn't have a stereotypical family dynamic doesn't mean he's going to turn out a terrible child. I love spending time with him and if you want, on the days he's home we can go out to the park to play with the kids there." I try to reassure her.

"Thank you, Elise. I honestly don't know what I would do without you." I hear her voice relax a bit.

"Yah of course."

"Speaking of spending more time with Andrew though. I was thinking of having a small family vacation out here in California. Maybe if your schedule allows it you and Andrew can fly out at the end of the week and we can spend a couple of days here and fly back home together."

"That sounds wonderful. My next article isn't due until next Friday so I'm free this weekend. I'll fly out with Andrew after his morning class on Friday." I say with excitement.

I've been to California a few times but all for business reasons. With Natasha always working and Andrew now starting school I've spent a lot of time on my own at home writing my articles. I'm looking forward to spending some downtime with both of them in California which is bound have great weather too.

"Ok, that sounds great! I'm going to check in for the night now. I have to be in a conference by 7 tomorrow morning." I hear Natasha yawn as she finishes her sentence.

"Yeah, you should get some sleep. Goodnight Natasha."

"Goodnight Elise." Natasha hangs up.

It's already 1am so I head to bed myself. I go check on Andrew like I always do and head back to my bedroom. I'm looking forward to this weekend.

**Thursday evening**

You'd think packing for a small 4 year old would be easy but I'm here going through a very long list I made for myself on all the things Andrew needs.

"Andrew! Buddy where did you put your green pants!" I shout down the hall.

"I DUNNO AUNTIE ELISE!" Andrew yells back from the living room.

I don't know what I expected from asking a child where their clothes were. I give and end up packing his blue shorts with black sharks on them instead. Just as I close Andrew's suitcase I hear the house phone ring.

"Hi, Mommy!" I hear Andrew's voice as he picks up the phone. "Yah Auntie Elise is upstairs looking for my green pants right now. AUNTIE ELISE MOMMY WANTS TO TALK TO YOU!" I smile as I walk downstairs to the living room.

"Hello?"

I hear Natasha laugh lightly, "Hi Elise. Just wanted to check in on things for tomorrow. Did you end up finding his green pants?"

I can't help but laugh too. "No, I just ended up packing his blue shark shorts. I don't think he understands that we're going to California tomorrow though." Sometimes I wish I still had the oblivion of a child.

"Haha sounds like my man. Well, I'm really looking forward to you guys coming. I've got a few activities booked that I think both of you will like."

"That sounds great. I better put Andrew to bed now since he'll be having a long day tomorrow."

"Goodnight Elise! Tell Andrew I said goodnight."

"Will do. And goodnight to you too." I smile as I hang up.


	5. Panic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> N/A

**Friday afternoon**

**POV Natasha**

    I'm finally wrapping up the things for my movie and heading back to my Airbnb. I have only a few more hours until Andrew and Elise land and I probably should go pick them up from the airport. I make a late lunch and pull up my laptop to make sure their flight is on time. As I put my laptop away I hear my phone ring. I check the caller and it's Elise. Excitedly I answer.

    "Hey, Elise!"

    "Natasha you have to come home now!" I hear panic in Elise's voice and I start to panic too.

    "Wait what? What's wrong?" So many different things are running through my mind now.

    "We... there... I... Andrew... Andrew's in critical condition. I'm so sorry Natasha. There was a car and we spun and everything just..." Elise is just sobbing now and my heart drops.

    "Elise, it's ok, calm down. I'll be there as fast as I can. You can explain everything to me when I get there." I try to stay as calm as a mother with a son in the ER can get.

    I pack up everything as fast as I can. Luckily I packed lightly for this trip but with all the panic running through my mind it feels like it takes forever to pack everything. I call up a taxi and in a hurry yell at the driver.

    "You have to get me to the nearest airport now!" I get a look from the driver as he starts driving.

Every 5 minutes I anxiously ask him if we can drive any faster.

    "Miss I'm already driving 10 over the speed limit. If you want to get to the airport without being pulled over for a ticket I suggest you stay calm in the back and let me do the driving."

    "My best friend is injured and my 4-year-old son could potentially be dying right now! You don't tell me to calm down." My frustration only grows.

    For the rest of the car ride, the driver stays silent but now with a pitiful look on his face. I realize that yelling at the poor man who's just doing his job won't do any of us any good. He finally pulls up at the front of the airport entrance and wishes me luck as I hurry out. At this point, I'm sprinting across the airport. Once I get to the front desk I ask for the soonest flight they could book me for. There was one leaving in 30 minutes. I guess that's one good thing from this disastrous situation. Throughout the whole plane ride back home I'm praying. I never grew up religious or believed in a God but right now my son's life is on the line so I'm praying.


	6. Flashback

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> N/A

**Earlier that day**

**POV Elise**

    I pack the last of the things into the trunk. I get into the car and drive to Andrew's preschool. As I pull up into the parking lot I see Amanda, Johnny's mom.

    "Hi, Amanda!"

    "Oh hey there Elise! How are things?" Amanda is a sweet middle-aged woman who always bakes cookies for the kids.

    "Things are good. Andrew and I are actually going to LA tonight to go see Natasha."

    "That sounds so much fun! Well, I hope you guys have a good time. Tell Natasha I said hi and that we should catch up sometime soon!" With her wide smile, Amanda walks away.

    I finally get Andrew and we hit the road to the airport. We're nearing the airport and then it comes out of nowhere. I try to swerve to prevent the truck from hitting us only to hit another car myself. After hitting the car on the left I see the truck still serving. It too is trying to stop but as it turns the back end of the truck hits Andrew's side of the car. If I wasn't panicking already I am now. I look behind me only to see Andrew unconscious and severely bleeding.

    "Andrew! Andrew, you have to wake up buddy!" I try to shake him awake well aware that it won't work.

    "No no no no this can't be happening!"

     _The lights are blinding and I stand there stunned._

_Now I'm sitting in a hospital waiting room. I watch as my father paces around while running his hand through his hair._

_A doctor finally comes out but his face says it all._

_"Mr. Bauman we did everything we could but she was dying quickly. I am very sorry but she didn't make it."_

_There's a thing about doctors. It's their job to save lives but once in awhile, they can't do their job. They probably have given this same speech to many other families. I wonder if they've become immune to the constant losses themselves._

_Now my father is sobbing. He's angry and hitting the wall. My mother was everything to him. She was everything to the both of us. And now she's gone just like that. Blink of an eye and no goodbyes._

    A police officer pulls me out of my trance.

    "Excuse me miss, we really need you to come with us. The boy is severely injured and we need to take him to the hospital now." The officer is gentle but there's an urgency in his voice.

    "Yeah... we should go..." I still can't believe this is happening.

    When reality finally hits I call Natasha.

    "Natasha you have to come back home now!" I was starting to panic.

There were blinking lights and sirens blaring all around me. Everything seemed to be happening all too fast around me and I didn't know what to do. There was nothing I could do. I felt helpless and lost. I was 10 again. I just stood there watching the paramedics tend Andrew's wounds to the best of their abilities. I felt someone guiding me to the ambulance and I walked submissively.


	7. Broken Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> N/A

**POV Natasha**

     My plane lands and I take the next taxi straight to the hospital. I walk in and see Elise hopelessly and helplessly standing in the middle of the waiting room. I drop all my things and run towards her. She collapses into my arms.

"Shhh, it's ok Elise. Everything will be ok." I gather up the little bit of sanity I have left to comfort Elise.

     One late night on set Elise told me about what happened to her mother. I never could understand what it was like to lose a parent or watch a loved one in the hospital. I was never close with my parents. Hell, they didn't even come to the birth of their own grandchild. Now I'm equally as helpless. My whole world is currently wired up and in tubes while strangers are trying to restore his life.

     Elise and I waited hours for Andrew's surgery to be over. The hours felt like days. Elise refused to eat thinking it was her fault. No amount of reassuring would get her to come to terms with the accident. At this point, I should be the one being strong for all three of us but I couldn't do it.

     I haven't thought of Andrew's father in a while. He's sent in a simple gift card for Andrew's birthday but that was the extent of his presence in his life. However, maybe it was because of how helpless I felt at the moment but I called him up. He only lived a couple hours away so he got here before Andrew was out of surgery.

"Natasha..." That voice I hadn't heard in over 2 years.

Without even realizing I ran into his arms.

Shortly after a doctor came out. His face said it all.


	8. Conclusion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> N/A

AN: Hi there! If you're reading this it probably means you finished my story! Whether you liked it or not thank you for taking the time to actually read it :). Hopefully, I have enough people who enjoyed this story to move forward and actually take these characters into a newer world. Thank you again and share with your friends.

-B 


	9. AN

AN: Hi everyone! First off I wanted to thank everyone who was lovely enough to read my story and maybe even share it. When I originally posted this story I had no idea I would get all this positive feedback. However, I did have a few ideas for the future in mind. With that being said I would like to let you know that I will be continuing to write. Just a quick breakdown for the future. My plan is to write future stories in forms of volumes. I will be posting by chapters hopefully weekly and if volume I goes well then I will proceed to volume II. I will post the first chapter of the official story at the end of this "book" and will also upload it on its own. My hope is to get it up by Thanksgiving in a way to say thank you for all the reads :). So keep an eye out for the update and have a lovely day.

-B


	10. More To Us Preview

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First chapter of the first book Volume I: More To Us

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Hi Everyone! Surprise! So I know I said I would have the first chapter of the actual book up by Thanksgiving but I felt like being nice and decided, starting from today I will post a new chapter every day until Friday. It picks up directly from where we left off at the end of the prologue so you'll finally get to know how the cliffhanger picks up. Hope you enjoy :)
> 
> \- B

****POV Natasha** **

_Shortly after a doctor came out. His face said it all._

He didn’t need to say anything. The moment he walked out I saw the apologetic look in his eyes. But I still stood there hoping for the best.

“Are you Ms. Negovanlis?” The doctor approaches me first.

“Yes.” I barely croak out an answer.

“Your son, he’s in critical conditions and…”

Andrew’s not dead. I can sense all the terrible things to come but he’s not dead.

“… he’s been under surgery for several hours and his small body couldn’t take it.”

My heart drops.

“We were able to stabilize him but he’s fallen into a coma and is currently on life support.”

There it was. Now I’m thinking death may be better than life support.

“So… um…” I’m stuttering and can’t get any words out.

“So what does this mean for Andrew in the future?” I look up to see Jacob, Andrew’s dad speak up on my behalf.

“Are you Andrew’s father?” The doctor gives him a confused look.

“Yes. I don’t live with Andrew and his mother but I did come as fast as I could.”

“I see. Well, there are a few possibilities. People with injuries as extensive as Andrew’s could stay in a coma for several weeks maybe even months. So in my professional opinion, I think we should watch over him for a few weeks in hopes that he does wake up. However, if he does wake up there could be defects in his brain from not functioning for a long time. You also have to take into consideration the possibility that he might not wake up and having to decide whether or not you will keep him on life support.”

After what I feel like has been ages I look over to Elise. She’s been quietly standing there holding my hand the whole time. She has a conflicting expression on her face as she probably has several different things going through her mind. First off, this accident itself has brought up tragic memories and she’s trying to keep herself from going insane. Then there’s the fact that she doesn’t like Jacob very much. She’s met him once before when he swung by to drop off some of Andrew’s stuff. She didn’t know him before we met but she finds his absence in Andrew’s life unsettling. So the fact that Andrew is in critical condition and his MIA father is standing in the lobby is conflicting for her.

“Thank you, doctor…”

“Jones, Dr. Jones”

“Thank you.” That’s all I’m able to stammer out.

Dr. Jones shows us the way towards where Andrew has been transferred to and I don’t realize I’ve been holding my breath until I let out a much-needed sigh at the sight of my son. First, Elise hurries over to Andrew’s left-hand side. I follow suit to his right. Elise and I are preoccupied just looking over the visible injuries of Andrew, which aren’t as bad, expected. But no matter how healthy he looked on the outside I knew my baby was dying on the inside. I finally look up to see Jacob awkwardly standing at the foot of the bed. 2 years since he’s seen his son and 2 years he’s never getting back and now he’s standing here probably as concerned as I am. Absent or not I can allow Jacob to feel the pain of a parent.

“Um Natasha, I can stay here with him overnight so that you can get some rest.” After some looming minutes, Jacob spoke up.

“No no no I’ve been gone for too long I need to be with him right now.”

Jacob doesn’t argue and leaves to grab the three of us coffee. After he leaves Elise finally says something.

“Why is he here? I mean yes, he’s Andrew’s father but what right does he think he has to just show up and stick around?” I can hear the aggravation in Elise’s voice.

I let out a long sigh, “No one said anything about him staying. But he does have the right to know how his son is doing. Let's just get through these few days and we can deal with Jacob later.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I hope y'all enjoyed the first chapter of More To Us: Volume I. I know this one was a bit short and sadly the next few chapters will be about the same length. When I'm on a more regular schedule I will try to make each chapter a bit meatier but for now, you have this! There is a separate book under my profile for it so you should go add it to your bookshelf so you don't miss any more updates ;).
> 
> \- B


End file.
